President Donald Trump and senior officials in his administration have responded strongly to a leaked analysis that claimed recent U.S. airstrikes on Iran caused only minimal disruption to its nuclear operations.
While attending a NATO summit in The Hague on Wednesday, Trump described the operation as having led to the “virtual obliteration” of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and insisted it had delayed the program “by decades”.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, also present at the summit, downplayed the leaked report’s accuracy, attributing it to an early-stage Pentagon evaluation made with “low confidence” and revealed that federal investigators are now looking into the source of the leak.
Sources familiar with the internal report told officials on Tuesday that the U.S. airstrikes over the weekend did not fully destroy Iran’s enriched uranium supply. They claimed the impact would likely delay Iran’s nuclear activities by only several months — an assertion quickly denied by the administration as “flat-out wrong”.
Details from the classified assessment suggest that although access points to key nuclear sites such as Natanz and Fordo were sealed, the subterranean infrastructure largely remained intact.
Officials briefed on the situation emphasized that the leaked analysis reflected preliminary data and could shift as more intelligence is gathered from the bombed areas.
The Pentagon’s military intelligence division, which compiled the report, specializes in gathering defense-related data and supports combat operations. It operates independently from other agencies, including those focused on civilian intelligence.
The United States has numerous intelligence agencies with varied mandates, which often leads to differing conclusions — such as the ongoing debate over the origins of COVID-19.
Sitting alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump acknowledged the uncertainties in the intelligence by calling it “very inconclusive”, but then doubled down: “It was very severe, it was [an] obliteration.”
When pressed about the possibility of launching additional strikes if Iran resumed nuclear enrichment, Trump responded: “Sure, but I’m not going to have to worry about that. It’s gone for years.”
He later compared the recent mission to a historic military moment:
“I don’t want to use an example of Hiroshima, I don’t want to use an example of Nagasaki, but that was essentially the same thing – that ended a war,” he said.
During the summit, Trump stood alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Hegseth. Both echoed his view that the leaked material was misleading.
Hegseth dismissed the claims in the report and said the bombing operation had hit “precisely where they were supposed to”.
He added: “Any assessment that tells you it was something otherwise is speculating with other motives.” He characterised the leak as “completely false”.
Rubio also questioned the accuracy of the report, suggesting its contents had been manipulated before being shared with the public. He criticized those behind the leak as “professional stabbers”.
Preliminary intelligence further suggested that Iran had relocated a portion of its uranium before the strikes.
According to individuals with access to the report, while the entranceways were damaged and some surface-level structures were destroyed, much of the sophisticated enrichment machinery survived.
In intelligence reporting, a “low confidence” label usually points to information that is fragmented, poorly sourced, or subject to significant uncertainty — meaning it should be treated with caution.
By highlighting this classification, Hegseth implied that conclusions drawn from the assessment were tentative and subject to revision.
The U.S. reportedly struck three Iranian nuclear locations — Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordo — using specialized bombs capable of breaching hardened underground targets.
Although it’s not publicly confirmed which specific weapon was deployed, analysts believe the 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) may have been used, as it’s one of the few capable of damaging Iran’s fortified facilities.
Tehran has consistently maintained that its nuclear activities are civilian in nature.
Following the operation, Gen Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addressed the media, noting that time would be needed to assess the full impact on Iran’s nuclear network.
However, he also stated: “All three sites sustained extremely severe damage and destruction.” Satellite photos showed six new craters near two entryways at the Fordo site, along with visible dust and rubble.
Despite this, satellite views have not clearly revealed how deep the damage runs beneath the surface.
Iranian state officials claimed the targeted sites had been vacated well before the strike, minimizing the blow by saying sensitive materials had already been removed.
Officials from both the U.S. and Israel have publicly praised the operation and described it as successful.
